How Do I Choose

I like to be involved in a lot of things: classes, organizations, charities.  But there is only so much time in a day and I have to work and my doctor says I have to eat and sleep.  So this means I have to choose when and where to spend my time.  And it also means I can’t do everything.

Right now I have to make that decision.  I want to spend more time on my business and improve my skills at machine quilting on my home machine and get involved in some other art and community organizations.  But I can’t do it all.

So how do I choose?  It would mean letting go of some obligations I already have. but again, how do I choose.   I posted this question on my Facebook page and got some interesting suggestions.

One friend asked if what I was considering giving up was still nurturing me.  It is and it isn’t, I told her.  Another friend said that the change didn’t have to be permanent.  I could take a break and go back to it.  And if I did leave the obligation, this might let someone else serve in my place which might be something they need.  I hadn’t thought about this. A third friend suggested that if I was considering leaving an obligation that just might be my answer.  And while reading all these comments I heard in a television show the old saying “When one door closes, another one opens.”

I am still thinking about what to let go and what to add to my life.  I seem to flip flop on the decision every day.  At some time this may be something you need to decide.  If you are involved in an organization or a charity, does it still nurture you?  Is the motivation you had when you started still there?  Is it something you look forward to being involved or does it feel like something you have to do (in other words when you think of it does it make you smile or make you frown)? 

On the other side, what would the new organizations or activities bring to your life?  What new skills will you use or learn?  What people might you meet?  As one of my friends asked, will this nurture you in some way?

Share what decisions like this you might have made or are making.  And I will keep you up to date on my decision.

©2018 – Cheryl Fillion

Naptime

It has been cold and snowy all week where I live.  Cold weather always tempts me to do one of two things:  crawl under a quilt and read or crawl under a quilt and nap.

Napping is becoming more and more essential in today's world of tablets and smart phones and overbooked schedules.  Books are being written on how to nap, the benefits of naps, and the enjoyment of naps.  Businesses are encouraging naps as a way to increase productivity.  Clinics are being created to study sleep deprivation and its effect on our health.

While daily naps have not been accepted in America, medical research is finding that lack of sleep is actually a danger to our health.  Sleep deprivation increases our stress which can lead to high blood pressure.  According to the National Sleep Association, 100,000 highway accidents a year leading to 1,500 deaths are due to fatigue. Not getting enough sleep can stop your immune system from functioning properly which leads to more frequent and longer lasting illnesses.

Now a nap here and there is certainly not going to take care of all the sleep deprivation that America suffers from.  But it can't hurt either.  Naps tend to refresh us.  They allow our minds and bodies to relax.  This increases our ability to accomplish things and to make fewer mistakes.  We are more likely to be sociable when we are rested. Our anxiety and depression will lessen.  It is even thought that if you think of a problem before you go to sleep, the solution will come while you're sleeping.

Naps are good for our creativity.  They counterbalance the busyness of our lives that doesn't leave any room, energy or ideas left for our art.  It gives us that extra boost our souls need to do something fulfilling for us.  How many of you want to do anything but be a couch potato when we are tired.

How long a nap last varies from person to person.  Some people feel refreshed after 15 minutes; some need an hour or more to feel any rest.  Some need dark and quiet while others doze just as well in a crowded room.  (I had an uncle who slept through every family gathering for as long as I remember and we had pictures to prove it.)

So if you find yourself overwhelmed this week, frustrated that you can't accomplish what you want and not wanting to be around anyone, take a nap.  It will do you and the world, a universe of good.  Nighty-night.

 

© 2018 – Cheryl Fillion

 

Inspire your Heart with Art Day – January 31

I like holidays.  Give me a reason to celebrate anything and I am there.  I like not only the major holidays (Christmas, Halloween, Easter, etc.) but I like the silly obscure holidays (Eat a hot dog day, Talk like a pirate day, National Scotch Tape Day, Cat day, Dog day).  They make life silly and fun.  I decided this year I would find an unusual holiday each month and do something special on them. So I guess for me, 2018 will be the year of the holiday. 

The one that attracted me for January (other than New Years day) is January 31 which is Inspire Your Heart With Art Day.  It seemed to fit not only the title of my blog but the subject of it.  And it is really so easy to do. 

Think about it.  Art is everywhere.  You can visit a gallery. Go see an exhibit you have seen before or one that is brand new to you.  You could check out any of the movie websites and find a movie to watch.  Find something commercial or even something a little ‘artsy’.  Listen to music.  Attend a play or ballet.  Go to a poetry reading or create a reading of your own with friends.  Pick up or paint brush or your needle and create something beautiful.

So whatever your heart desires (pun intended).  And maybe share that art with someone you love.  Invite a friend or family member to the gallery or play or dance with you.  Write your loved one a poem.  Paint a picture to send to someone on Valentine’s day.

Think of how art makes you feel.  What thoughts does it invoke, what feelings.  You might even want to try a new art form to inspire your heart. If you are not one to go to a ballet or dance performance, do so.  If you never stepped into an art gallery, today is the day.

So on January 31^st, do something with any kind of art that will inspire you or excite you.  And let me be the first to wish you a Happy Inspire Your Heart with Art Day.

©2018- Cheryl E. Fillion

We are all Creative Beings

We are, you know, very creative beings.  We may not write symphonies like Mozart, or have a collections of plays and sonnets authored by us like Shakespeare, or even be known for painting the Sistine Chapel.  But we do create.    

There may be days when our time doesn't allow us to do much more than create a meal or even put together an outfit to wear to work.  Those creations count.  They say something about us: what we like, don't like, how we view the world.

But what happens in these busy times is we just rush through those creations.  We microwave our dinners; eliminating the sights, smells and actions that come with cooking.  There is no bubbling stew in the saucepan.  No aroma of freshly baked bread.  There is no "stir constantly until thickened".  Where is the enjoyment of creating food when you can cook a meal during the commercial breaks of a favorite sit-com.

Creativity takes time.  Not a lot of time.  Just enough to make you aware of what you're doing. You don't need to get out the paints or sit at the piano.  Try rearranging a shelf of books or the treasures on a table.  Buy a bouquet of flowers and carefully place each bud in a vase.  Go into the kitchen and create a meal that will use the stove top and a conventional oven.

Whatever you choose to do, do it slowly.  Savor each movement, each sight and sound.  Take your time.  As I tell my psychology students when they're taking a test, this is not a race.  Doing it fast does not make you the winner.

Creativity is as much the process as the product.  Enjoy the doing as well as what you have done. 

 

© 2018 – Cheryl Fillion